


Avenger 2.0: The Untold Consequences

by thealphagate_archivist



Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: Angst, Drama, Episode Related, Missing Scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-03-27
Updated: 2006-03-27
Packaged: 2019-02-02 06:14:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,433
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12721173
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thealphagate_archivist/pseuds/thealphagate_archivist
Summary: What was Daniel doing while Avenger 2.0 had the Stargate system disabled?





	Avenger 2.0: The Untold Consequences

**Author's Note:**

> Note from the archivists: this story was originally archived at [The Alpha Gate](https://fanlore.org/wiki/The_Alpha_Gate), a Stargate SG-1 archive, which began migration to the AO3 in 2017 when its hosting software, eFiction, was no longer receiving support. To preserve the archive, we began manually importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in November 2017. We e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are this creator and it hasn't transferred to your AO3 account, please contact us using the e-mail address on [The Alpha Gate collection profile](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/thealphagate).

Part One:

"Hey Daniel," Jack called to his friend down the long corridor deep inside Cheyenne Mountain, his words echoing off the concrete walls. "Wait up." 

"Jack," Daniel turned with a smile to face the other man. He'd been waiting for this, already having a good idea of what Jack was going to say - or rather, complain about.

"Hammond just informed me you requested permission to go to P3L-997 with SG-5 - what's going on?" Jack demanded as he reached Daniel's side.

"Jack, you and Teal'c don't need me at the Jaffa meeting," Daniel patiently stated, one hand on the door to his office.

"Yes, we do!" Jack argued.

"No, Jack." Daniel shook his head. "You don't. Teal'c has to go, of course, but they'll have more respect for you as a fellow warrior than for me." Daniel lowered his voice to add, "From the look of '997 it could be perfect for Pharrin and the other Talthusians. I really want them settled in a new home as quickly as possible." 

"Daniel," Jack paused, "it's just that I don't like the idea of you going off world with another team."

"Jack, SG-5 are one of the best teams on the base. Simon Brown is a good man. He's already had the 'look after Daniel or else' speech from you - several times! He knows the drill." Daniel smiled to let Jack know he understood and accepted this need of Jack's to be over protective. It used to bug him, sometimes a lot. But now he just accepted it - one of the changes since his ascension.

Jack sighed deeply. "Okay, I understand that you need to find the Talthusians a new home," Jack said, then added in a whiny tone, "but can't it wait until we can go with you?"

"No," Daniel said simply and Jack, after a brief pause, nodded. He understood Daniel felt a strong link with the survivors of Talthus, he just hoped it wasn't clouding the other man's judgment.

SG-1 had found the survivors of a planet called Talthus, all in cryogenic sleep, when they'd discovered and boarded their crashed vessel, the Stromos, on a mission to P2A-347. The ship's power was failing and, before they could finish a head count, all of SG-1 had been knocked out by some sort of stun weapon. Teal'c had regained consciousness first and had contacted the SGC for assistance to get his teammates safely back to Earth.

It was Daniel's behavior in the gateroom which first altered them something was wrong. It wasn't until later they realized Daniel had become the unwilling 'lifeboat' for a dozen consciousnesses, whose bodies had died as a result of the power failure. 

SG-1 split up in an attempt to find out what exactly had happened. Sam and Teal'c had returned to P2A-347 while Jack had remained on base with Daniel, watching the internal struggle as the differing personalities trapped within his friend's mind had surfaced. Pharrin, one of the ship's crew and the only passenger awake when the power had started to fail, had been uncovered hiding in the eerie, gloomy corridors of the Stromos. It was through this man they learned of the ship and its passengers' fate. HeHe

Finally, after a long emotionally draining struggle, a compromise had been reached with Pharrin. In exchange for a Naquadah generator to give enough power to the ship to revive all the other passengers, Pharrin agreed to remove the other consciousnesses from Daniel and take them into himself, along with the twelve he already carried.

Before Pharrin had been put back into cryo-sleep he'd told SG-1 which passengers to wake first, those who knew the ship and its systems the best.

SG-1 had taken Daniel back to Earth leaving SG-4 to carry on with the rescue mission.

Now the SGC were searching for a new planet to re-locate the Talthusians, who were still with the crashed Stromos on a planet unfit to sustain human life.

The first planet SG-1 had explored as a possible new home for the Talthusians was designated P6M-126. It had all the necessary requirements - clean water, good environment. It wasn't until SG-1 had been on the planet for a few hours that they found out what else P6M-126 had - a very hostile, violent native population. They'd barely escaped with their lives. 

P3L-997, or '997 as Daniel had referred to it, was second on the list of planets they had explored.

"I'll only be gone a week or so, Jack." Daniel put a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder and got a small smile in return. "I'll probably be back before you."

"Okay, okay," Jack grudgingly gave in, then his face brightened. "How about coming over to watch a game tonight?"

"Sure," Daniel grinned, relieved to have gotten off so lightly. "That sounds great."

* * *

Daniel wandered into the gateroom the next morning to find Jack deep in discussion with Major Simon Brown, the CO of SG-5. Well, discussion was hardly the correct word to describe the way Jack was giving Brown the 'look after Daniel or else' speech - again!

"Damn!" Daniel said quietly to Sam and Teal'c, who had both walked with him to the gateroom despite his numerous assurances that he knew the way and he was sure it was safe for him to make the trip from the locker room all by himself. "Brown's already had that speech."

"Not since you descended," Sam reminded her friend as she reached over to adjust one of the straps on his back-pack. "The colonel likes to refresh their memory just before they go off world with you." Sam bit her lip to hold in the smile as Daniel fidgeted under her hand like a little boy.

"He is concerned, DanielJackson," Teal'c said, his dark gaze resting on Simon Brown who had finally been released by Jack and had just joined them. "As am I." The meaning clear in Teal'c's tone and, though Daniel wasn't sure, he thought he saw Brown swallow nervously as he exchanged looks with his 2IC, Lieutenant Peter Holmes.

"It's raining again on P3L-997," Sergeant Walter Davis said over the loud speaker as he watched the MALP's transmission from his computer screen in the control room. Daniel turned to give him a nod. As he did so his gaze fell on General Hammond, who was standing behind Davis' shoulder. Daniel felt himself blush, knowing the general had witnessed his team's overprotective behavior. The general smiled kindly, fully understanding.

"Dr. Jackson, here's your wet weather gear," a voice at Daniel's side drew his attention back into the gateroom. He turned to take the raincoat off Sergeant Sally Ryan, who now stood at his side with Dr. Edmond Trellis, SG-5's anthropologist.

"It's still raining," Jack said to Daniel, moving to his side as the archaeologist donned his raincoat. "Don't you want to delay this mission until it stops?" The last was asked in a hopeful tone and Daniel exchanged a glance with Edmond Trellis, who was smirking at yet another obvious display of over-protectiveness by Daniel's CO. Daniel fidgeted uncomfortably. He was resigned to Jack's attitude, but it still embarrassed him.

"Jack," he said with a sigh. "You were with me last week when the Ta'alites explained that they call this 'the wet' and it's the beginning of their annual rain season."

"It's safe, Colonel," Major Brown spoke up. "'The wet' lasts for several weeks. It happens every year."

"Yeah, Jack." Daniel shrugged, then looked at his friend earnestly. "If we don't go now, it'll delay everything by weeks. It's only rain." Jack ran a hand through his hair, knowing his last objection had just been pushed aside. He stepped back to join Sam and Teal'c, silently giving Daniel his permission to leave.

Daniel followed SG-5 up the ramp, watching as they entered the wormhole. He turned back to wave at his team. The other three members of SG-1 stood at the base of the ramp side by side, arms crossed, clearly not happy. Daniel raised his eyebrows and all three nodded, almost identical tight smiles flittered briefly across their faces, before he turned to continue up the ramp.

Taking a deep breath Daniel stepped into the event horizon and only moments later found himself on a planet half way across the galaxy, lashed by heavy rain. Muffled cursing from SG-5 surrounded him as all attempted to fasten down their raincoats in the fierce wind, none expecting the sheer deluge they'd stepped into. The sky above them was an ominous dark gray.

From under the protection of his raincoat Daniel gazed out over the magnificent view spread out before him. Even through the pouring rain the small city of Ta'al was impressive. 

The city was a mixture of ancient stone buildings interlaced with architecture equivalent to early 20th century Earth. It was built on the foothills of a tall, rugged mountain and surrounded on two sides by equally high peaks. The builders of the city had utilized and enhanced natural terraces, so the city looked like a carpet draped over a giant set of stairs, much like the ancient Inca city of Machu Picchu in Peru.

Steep ramps connected the different levels together and each level was around the size of three or four city blocks, the city spread out over five square miles. The Stargate itself stood on a raised platform on the uppermost terrace of the city and afforded an uninterrupted view for many miles.

Daniel frowned looking down at the swirling, dark sea. It was difficult to see through the heavy downpour but it seemed to be close to flooding one of the lower levels. Yet, five days ago when SG-1 had visited P3L-997, after reading the encouraging report from SG-5, the sea was some distance from the city. "Edmond," he addressed the man at his side. "Do you remember the sea being so close the Ta'al last time we were here?"

Edmond Trellis peered through the rain to the view below. "No," he answered quickly. "It was quite a way downhill."

"Maybe a king tide?" Lieutenant Holmes suggested, a worried frown marring his forehead.

At that time Daniel became aware that dozens of the city's inhabitants had begun to converge upon them, though he only recognized a couple from his last visit. On that visit most of the people had been too shy or wary to come near the SG teams. 

As the crowd drew closer, Daniel realized they looked terrified rather than wary and they were looking fearfully into the sky over his shoulder. Daniel turned and saw their very large moon shining brightly on the horizon, glimpsed through the thick broken cloud cover. Trellis drew in a quick breath. "Do you remember the moon being that close?" 

Daniel frowned and shook his head, a sick feeling settling in his stomach. Something was very wrong here. With one last look at the moon, he turned to face the crowd coming towards him. "Hello, Virachocha," he said with a smile as he walked down the stairs, raising his voice over the noise of the heavy rain.

"Greetings," Virachocha said. He was the chief hierarch of Ta'al, a large man with a full head and beard of dark red hair. "We were not sure you were going to return," he said.

"You must help us!" A woman Daniel didn't recognize came forward and spoke in a desperate tone, her hands reaching out beseechingly.

"What?" Daniel asked, concerned. "Why?"

"We are doomed," one of the older men said in a shaking voice, his words nearly lost in a loud clap of thunder. "The ocean will soon swallow us."

Virachocha threw both people a dark look demanding their silence. "This is Pachacuti, the head of our scientific team." A small timid man came forward, his eyes moving nervously between the members of SG-5 and Daniel.

"My team and I have been running tests for several weeks and we have now confirmed that our moon's orbit is in decay," he explained, swallowing loudly. "We believe that, within the next few months, it will crash into our planet and we will all die." At that moment the ground beneath them trembled.

Daniel turned startled eyes to Edmond, looking for an explanation. This wasn't his area of expertise and Edmond shrugged his shoulders. "If I remember my science correctly and if the orbit is decaying, then this planet is indeed doomed," Edmond explained, the earth trembled again under their feet as if the highlight the danger. "Why haven't you used the Stargate to escape?" he turned to ask Pachacuti.

"We have been trying to make it work for many, many years but have never succeeded," Pachacuti explained, an edge of panic now entering his tone.

"Yeah, took us a while too," Edmond said with a smile to Daniel accompanied by a small nudge.

"How many of you are there?" From his view point Daniel could see around one hundred people milling around the Stargate but there were many more lurking in the shadows of the buildings.

"We number nearly three thousand, eight hundred." Virachocha answered immediately. "And there are another two hundred living on nearby farms."

For the first time Daniel and SG-5 let their eyes fall to look upon the crowd, picking out individuals from amongst the scared mass of people. Off to one side was a pretty blonde woman holding a small baby in one arm and grasping the hand of a toddler with the other, to her left stood an elderly couple with their arms tightly around each other.

The majority of the crowd weren't dressed for the weather and looked bedraggled and miserable, their colorful clothing wet and mud splattered. The ground trembled again and Daniel noted many of the people grasped at each other, several women and children crying out in terror.

"How much has the ocean risen?" Edmond questioned with a frown, wiping the rain from his face. At that moment the downpour stopped abruptly, like someone had turned off a giant faucet. All breathed an audible sigh of relief.

"A long way." Virachocha turned back towards the expanse of water. "In just the past few days the ocean has risen meters and the lowest terrace is now close to being flooded, it is continually battered by many large waves, some over thirty feet in height."

Daniel eyes opened wide in alarm at this piece of news before turning to Major Simon Brown, SG-5's CO. "We'd better contact Earth. Looks like we may have to evacuate them too," Brown stated in his usual calm manner.

"We may be able to take you through the Stargate to safety," Daniel told the Ta'alites and the relief was evident in their faces.

"Thank you." The thanks from Virachocha were heartfelt and echoed from all around.

"Where are the rest of your people?" Brown asked. A city this size would hold many more people than four thousand.

"Portions of the city have been deserted for some time as our population had been in decline," Viracocha explained. "Over six hundred left in our fleet of ships, taking their chances with the sea as they believed we would all perish by drowning as the water level rose."

"Parts of the ships have since washed ashore," Pachacuti said. "We believe their escape failed."

"Okay," Daniel sighed. "I'll dial the SGC and let them know the situation." Daniel ran a hand over his face. This was the last thing he needed - to go looking for a planet for relocation for the remains of one race but instead to find the remains of another also needing relocation - what a mess!

"Great place for a holiday," Jack said from the dry control room at the SGC while viewing the MALP images.

"Yeah, bet the fishing's good!" Daniel said then added with a grin, "Pity we can't get anywhere near the sea." He turned quickly to introduce Sam to Pachacuti then listened as the Ta'al scientist explained the situation.

After a few minutes Sam spoke to Daniel again. "You have to evacuate everyone as soon as possible. From what they have been experiencing, Pachacuti is correct about the moon's orbit decaying. When it falls - well, it'll be a planet killer, destroying all life. The real danger, at the moment, is the effects the gravitational disturbance is causing - earthquakes, tidal waves, hurricanes and volcanic eruptions."

"Sorry Daniel," Jack said with obvious sympathy. "I know you were really hoping this was a new home for the Talthusians."

"Now we must find a safe planet for these people as well," Teal'c said from his place at Jack's shoulder, for once stating the obvious.

"Dr. Jackson, I'll immediately prepare the base to receive refugees," Hammond said.

"General, there are four thousand of them." Daniel said and his words hung heavily in the control room at the SGC. They couldn't take anywhere near that number of refugees into the SGC plus there was a time factor involved in moving that many people.

"Any ideas people?" Hammond asked those around him.

"Only two possibilities come to mind, sir," Sam said, her voice heavy with worry. "We could evacuate them temporarily to The Land of the Light," she paused, "or Pangar."

"Pangar?" Jack said. "You mean where we first found the Tretonin?"

"The Pangarans want to keep relations open with us," Sam said as she nodded in confirmation of Jack's guess. "Taking in these refugees, even temporarily, would help." She looked to the general.

"Major, contact Pangar and Tupilo, see who is best able to assist." Sam nodded. "Dr. Jackson, we'll have to get back to you with a possible relocation site."

Daniel nodded and turned face to Virachocha. "How long will it take for the farmers to arrive?"

"It will take five days for messengers to be sent and all the farmers to reach the city. My citizens here in Ta'al will be ready to leave within the day," Virachocha said after a moment.

"Sam, is a week too long?" Daniel once again turned to speak into the MALP.

"It's hard to say, Daniel. If they only started noticing the effects of the moon's decaying orbit recently it could mean we have anything up to two or three months to evacuate," Sam said. "Maybe more. All we can do, at this point, is expect the worse and find somewhere to evacuate them to as soon as possible."

"Okay," Daniel said, with a sigh.

"Daniel," Jack called to get his friend's attention again. "We can't come through to help. Teal'c and I have to leave tomorrow for the Jaffa meeting." Jack advised, the worry in his tone obvious. 

"Its okay, Jack. SG-5 and I can handle it." Daniel said confidently.

"Don't take too long, Daniel," Sam warned her teammate. "It's going to get pretty rough there." Daniel nodded in agreement. 'It's pretty rough now,' he thought. In only the short time Daniel and SG-5 had been on the planet he could see that the sea level had increased.

"Virachocha," Daniel turned to the man at his side. "Send out your messengers to the farmers. Get them here as soon as you can."

While SG-5 and Daniel waited for a response from the SGC as to a possible relocation site, they discussed with Virachocha and Pachacuti the logistics involved in transporting four thousand people to another planet. Simply moving the refugees was only the beginning, they then had to provide food and shelter of some kind.

"Dr. Jackson," Hammond's voice came through the Stargate just over two hours later. "The Pangarans are happy to take the refugees though they won't have enough shelter for all of them."

"We're lucky there, sir," Daniel was happy to inform him. "The Ta'alites hold a yearly festival, similar to the ancient worship rites of the Inca's Sun God Inti on Earth. Most of the citizens leave the city to camp out in the valley, sleeping in sturdy colorful tents. They have more than enough for all to have shelter."

"And they have just finished harvest so they have bulk grains and fruits, both fresh and dried, they will also bring with them," Edmond Trellis said at Daniel's shoulder.

"Well, it sounds like you have everything under control," Hammond said with satisfaction. "I'll leave the negotiations with you and SG-5."

Daniel went through the gate with Simon Brown to co-ordinate the transfer with the Pangarans. Though he hadn't been with SG-1 last year when the team had first gone to Pangar, Daniel had since met Dollen and Tegar during diplomatic talks. He found the men and their people very sympathetic to the Ta'alites plight.

Over the next five days, in amongst heavy and more frequent periods of rain, most of the citizens of Ta'al, along with cartload after cartload of food and equipment went through the gate to Pangar. The farmers had also begun to gather with their most precious possessions bundled onto carts. With them they had over two hundred animals, like a cross between a cow and a sheep, which they refused to leave behind to die.

Daniel contacted the Pangarans to tell them livestock was also coming through. This news was well received on the other side and Daniel was relieved. He hadn't looked forward to telling the farmers, who were giving up their lives to face an uncertain future vastly removed from all that they knew, that the animals wouldn't be able to go through. He wanted to make it as easy on them as he could.

Finally, all that remained to go through the gate were Virachocha, Pachacuti and the last of the farmers, numbering only two hundred or so. Over the past two days the rain had fallen without reprieve and strong wind gusts were battering the city. Edmond speculated that there might be a cyclone forming off the coast and Daniel hoped, if this was the case, everyone would be through the gate before it crossed the coast-line.

As Daniel mounted the stairs to the Stargate to dial Pangar's address for what was the final time, he turned to look out over the city. He could see large dark waves in the ocean below gaining in height and crashing against the wall at the back of the lowest terrace, spraying water up the level above. In the distance rogue waves, caused by underwater earthquakes off shore and appearing as high as skyscrapers, were looming towards the shoreline. There was a constant pounding noise in the background as the elements battered the city. As he watched part of the wall collapsed under the onslaught, the crash echoing all around.

Daniel dialed the address. Nothing happened. Frowning he'd peered at the gate as it failed to engage. Daniel tried again, carefully pressing the chevrons for Pangar - again nothing happened. Then he tried Earth, again nothing. "Damn," he thought, knowing his understanding of how the gate and DHD worked wasn't enough to even contemplate a check of their systems. He was hoping the effects of the moon weren't damaging the gate in anyway.

"Maybe both gates are currently engaged," Sergeant Ryan suggested as she joined him next to the DHD. Daniel nodded and tried to dial the Alpha site with no success.

"What's wrong?" Major Brown called from his position at the base of the stairs.

"The Stargate isn't working." Daniel said. "Maybe the moon's doing something to it?" he speculated eyeing the astral body with some misgiving. "Or something else." He turned back to the Stargate and once again dialed Earth, the Alpha site and the Land of the Light - again nothing.

"Ow!" Ryan exclaimed suddenly as a large hail stone hit her on the shoulder. Soon all were being battered by the hail, which began to fall amidst the rain, pounding down onto the ground.

"Look," Brown shouted over the noise. "We better get these people out of here; some of these hailstones are pretty big. Let's get them under shelter then a couple of us can come back and keep trying the gate." Daniel agreed as a particularly large chunk of ice hit nearby. The last thing he wanted were more bruises for Janet to fuss over and Jack to use as proof positive Daniel couldn't be trusted out of the older man's sight.

"What is wrong?" Virachocha questioned nervously as the Tau'ri hurried down the stairs from the Stargate.

"Um . . there is a temporary problem getting the Stargate to work." Daniel said. "We have to get out of this weather."

"Let us return to the city," Virachocha said, obviously worried but accepting Daniel's explanation. With a small smile in an attempt to cover his concern, the chief hierarch turned to the small crowd of farmers gathered near the gate. "We must go into the city and find shelter until this storm is over." He then led everyone through the nearby streets.

As they walked they could see into the lower levels of the city near the water, many of the buildings crumbling from the onslaught of the elements. Over the days they had been in Ta'al they had almost gotten used to the constant earth tremors, but now these combined with the other elements to underline the fact that the planet was doomed.

The waves had gained much in height and power and had battered down several more buildings in the few hours. For a brief moment Daniel was reminded of the time SG-1 had taken Catherine through the Stargate to unexpectedly meet up with her missing fiancé, Ernest. At that time the massive castle they'd been in was suffering a similar beating to what Ta'al was now experiencing.

Several flashes of lightning illuminated the sky, sending the landscape in sharp relief. The sounds of the waves crashing relentlessly into the lower city were like that of a canon discharging, their echoes reverberating off the surrounding mountains. Combined with the noise of the wind whipping through the desolate streets and thunder and tremors shaking the ground, Daniel found it hard to hear Virachocha as the Ta'al hierarch soothed the nervous farmers.

SG-5 and Daniel separated from the rest of the crowd, who were following Virachocha to find shelter in the nearly empty city, to brave the rain and hail to stand at the edge of the nearest level and watch the sea from the shelter of a nearby building. The violent power and immensity of the waves awe-inspiring. Each wave was encroaching further and further into the city. Daniel looked up at the sky as the hail suddenly stopped. The cloud cover seemed even heavier than before and lightning was flickering in several locations across the entire sky. 

The buildings on the higher terraces were in much better condition than those lower down. Daniel surmised that the dwindling population had left the lower terraces so that the remaining population could all live in the one area. SG-5 and Daniel made their way quickly to a large building they had been staying in for the past few days and stepped inside. It was a relief to be out of the pouring rain. Daniel put down his pack with a sigh and turned to SG-5. "Anyone got any ideas?" he asked, shouting over the noise of the rain hitting the iron roof above their heads.

"I'm not an expert but I just can't see the moon hampering the Stargate or DHD in any way. Those things survive meteorite hits!" Trellis said. "There has to be some other explanation."

"How long do you think we have before the Stargate is under water?" Daniel asked.

Brown shrugged. "If the water continues to rise at this rate, two days?" He turned to his team, who all nodded solemnly in agreement. 

"Okay, I'll go back and keep trying to dial addresses I know." Daniel said. "If I can't get through I'll wait until they check on us, which should be hopefully within the next two hours or so."

Daniel, accompanied by Sergeant Ryan, returned to the Stargate to try dialing Earth and the Alpha site as well as several other addresses, each time with no success. The Stargate stood out in the open and there was no protection nearby. The Ta'alites had given the SG team a piece of iron roofing three foot square. Daniel watched briefly as Ryan struggled to control this in the wind, before successfully pinning it down next to the DHD for some shelter.

Daniel glanced down at his watch, squinting through his rain-encrusted glasses. All he could do, at this point, was wait for the SGC to check in with him and hope they could get a lock. He'd just have to be patient until then. Wrapping his raincoat more securely around himself he'd sat next to Ryan by the DHD, helping her hold the piece of iron roofing steady, settling in to wait.

Almost two hours later the chevrons engaged and the wormhole opened. Daniel and Ryan hid until they determined it was the SGC. What they told Daniel only intensified the bad feeling in his gut - the gate system was down, something about a virus. A solution was being sort and he was told to wait next to the Stargate while they tried something.

After ten minutes of watching the ocean gain new inroads into the city, the wormhole engaged again. "Daniel." He smiled as he recognized his teammates' voice. "Can you try dialing Earth now?"

"Okay, Sam," he shouted and a moment later the wormhole from Earth disengaged. Daniel immediately dialed home, nothing. Then he'd dialed the Alpha site, again nothing. The disappointment cut through him, he hated telling Sam their plan had failed. Again he waited for the SGC to establish another wormhole.

"Sorry to rain on your parade, guys." Daniel shouted into the MALP's microphone over the noise of the heavy rain and thunder surrounding him. "But it didn't work. We tried dialing Earth and the Alpha site but couldn't get a lock. If you've got any other bright ideas now would be a very good time."

"What's your status doctor?" General George Hammond asked, the concern evident in his voice as he viewed the fuzzy MALP image before him.

"Flood waters rising pretty fast. Seismic activity is causing a lot of rogue waves. We estimate that within 48 hours the entire city will be underwater." Hammond turned to his left, watching Major Carter's undisguised worry for her teammate, before turning his angry gaze on the scientist who had caused this problem.

"We'll check back in two hours," Hammond told Daniel. The wormhole shut down. Daniel silently cursed this planet. 

Daniel looked around, reviewing his options. The Stargate was five hundred meters from the building he and SG-5 had set up camp in, though it felt like five miles trudging through the quagmire that had formed from landslides from the nearby hills. The heavy rain swept in under his hood making it almost impossible to see through his glasses. He tried wiping them on his T-shirt but everything was so damp all that did was smear them, making visibility even more difficult.

Daniel sighed. Now he had to wait again. Deciding he wasn't going to spend another two hours sitting in the rain, Daniel grabbed Sergeant Ryan by the arm and together they began the arduous journey back to the relatively warm dryness of their temporary quarters.

As they neared the building, Daniel walked around it to the other side, peering down at the city spread below. His heart raced as he took note of the encroaching flood waters, which had now engulfed another of the lower levels. Only the tops of most of the buildings on that level showed above the swirling water. Daniel sighed, he had really wanted this planet to be perfect to re-locate the passengers from Stromos. 

Daniel's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a clap of thunder so loud it vibrated into the ground, making it feel like the planet was trying to shake itself apart. He quailed at the thunderous noise. Pushing himself away from the protection of the wall he had been huddled against, Daniel sighed again. Luckily there was another planet that looked promising, P4P-961, and that was where they were headed next, if they escaped from here alive. 'Maybe third time lucky,' he thought, instinctively ducking at another incredibly loud clap of thunder, feeling the vibrations of the earth deep in his bones.

Daniel and Sergeant Ryan reached the safety of the building the others were sheltering in. Major Brown looked up as they entered and, without a word, he held up two objects - a hot cup of coffee and a dry towel. Daniel took the coffee and Ryan the towel, both very grateful.

"It's a wild night out there," Daniel said in classic understatement. The members of SG-5 laughed. Daniel was pleased they were with him on this one, as he got on well with all the members of the team - had known them all prior to his ascension. Daniel greatly admired Simon Brown, the sort of man everyone turned to in a crisis, and had a good relationship with Edmond Trellis, who shared Daniel's interest in Egyptology. 

Sally Ryan was a no-nonsense New Yorker who gave the men in her unit, and on the base, as good as she got. Lieutenant Peter Holmes was a quiet man who Daniel had never seen stressed by any situation. All in all, they were a very tight knit unit, highly respected. Daniel suspected Jack would have complained a lot louder if it had been any other unit than SG-5 he was going off world with.

At this moment the usually cheerful team looked far from happy. They were all huddled around the artificial heating device the Ta'alites had loaned them, Ryan with the towel around her shoulders, hands held out towards the warmth.

"Well," Daniel started, not sure exactly what to tell them. "It looks like we're stranded here for a while." He winced at the faces turned to him in disbelief. Sally Ryan just sat with hunched shoulders and continued staring into the heater. "There's a little problem with the Stargate system. Should be fixed in the next couple of hours," he finished trying to instill in his tone confidence he didn't feel.

"I want a hot shower!" Ryan suddenly said loudly and in a baby-like voice, much to her team's amusement. Their laughter released some of the built up tension.

An hour later Daniel decided it was time to trek to the Stargate again. Without a word, Trellis rose to his feet to accompany him. With the heavy rain reducing visibility to only ten or twelve feet in either direction, it was an arduous walk to reach the gate. The news from Earth wasn't good. Sam and the scientist, Felger, had gated to P5S-117 to re-boot the Stargate there. Again, all Daniel and SG-5 could do was wait, and now worry, as Daniel knew P5S-117 was a planet under Ba'al's control.

Darkness from the coming night was descending quickly as Daniel and Edmond Trellis walked back through the city. This, combined with the heavy cloud cover and the battering rain, decreasing visibility to only a few feet. Brown met them at the door of their temporary quarters. "You better have a look at this," he said quietly as he took them around to the other side of the building.

His torch beam illuminated the nightmare scene before them. Dark waves of water crashed in against the city only three giant steps below their current location. Already the level had risen approximately two hundred feet in just the last two days. Daniel, Brown and Trellis negotiated the slippery ramps that linked the giant steps until they stood upon the last one out of the water. Over the next ten minutes they noted the rise of the water against the ramp below them.

"I think we underestimated how much time we had until the city was underwater. We're going to have to move to higher ground sooner than we thought." Brown said. Shoulders slumped they made their way back up the ramp and across the giant steps to their quarters and filled in the rest of SG-5.

"Daniel, you and I better go and round up the remaining Ta'alites and move them," Brown said. "They seem too scared to think for themselves." As Daniel and Major Brown left, the rest of SG-5 turned to pack up their belongings without a word.

Within half an hour they had rounded up the population and were ready to move. The tremors from deep below the ground had started to get more noticeable. Daniel was worried they might be affecting the Stargate.

"Daniel," Edmond Trellis said. "See that outcrop up there?" Daniel followed his pointing finger. "It's the highest point around here. At least we'll be out of flood range, for the time being."

Daniel nodded, wondering if things could get any worse. "I'd better head to the Stargate again. Who's with me this time?" he asked his companions. With an exaggerated sigh, Peter Holmes held up his hand. "We'll meet you at the outcrop."

Over the past half an hour the landslides further up the mountain had released much more mud and the trek to the Stargate was now getting perilous. More than once Daniel and Peter slipped and would have been washed away in the slide if not for the other's support. Finally they reached the steps leading to the Stargate. 

"Still no word from Sam?" Daniel shouted into the MALP when the SGC checked in an hour later.

"To be honest . . . we should have heard back by now." Hammond sounded troubled. Daniel didn't envy the man - added to his usual responsibilities was the worry of several teams stuck off world and their fate resting in the hands of Sam and Felger.

"Well, we're going to have to abandon the Stargate and move to higher ground." Daniel informed him, hating to add to his concerns.

"Very well. Good luck Dr. Jackson." Hammond said.

Daniel and Peter Holmes exchanged worried looks, glancing again at the rising flood waters before heading off to the distant outcrop where the others were waiting. Daniel mentally weighed their options. If the water continued to rise at the rate it was currently, they would eventually run out of higher ground and be drowned. Their only hope after the Stargate went under was rescue by ship.

Upon arriving they found everyone sitting around miserably in the rain and the hail, which had returned but the hailstones weren't as big as they had been. There were caves nearby but it was too dangerous to enter them with the earth tremors. The Ta'alites had brought many of the sturdy multi-colored tents with them and were huddled together under their protection, trying to shield the children from the hailstones. SG-5 had one tarp propped up and that is where Daniel and Lieutenant Holmes headed.

"We've got a problem," Daniel said, rubbing his hair dry with the towel Simon Brown had handed him. "Judging by how quickly the sea level is rising I estimate the Stargate will be under water within the next five hours." 

"Five hours!" Edmond exclaimed but Simon simply nodded in agreement, his face calm, accepting.

Daniel sighed and sat down. "If the gate goes under our only hope will be if the Tok'ra can send a ship."

"We only have supplies to last us a few days and the Ta'alites don't have much with them, most of it has already gone through to Pangar" Sally Ryan pointed out. "If the city and the Stargate go under, our chances aren't good."

"I can't just sit here." Daniel stood after several minutes of silence. "I'm going back down to continually try to dial out. I'll contact you if I have any success."

"Daniel . ." Brown started, his tone anxious.

"Simon, we don't have any choice. If we can't dial out before the gate goes under water, then . ." he trailed off, all knew the consequences. "Keep your radio handy and be ready to move on my word."

Every ten minutes Daniel tried to dial Earth or Pangar. After the fifth failed attempt, he tried the Alpha site. "Come on!" he urged. Then, to his surprise, the wormhole engaged and settled. 'Thank you, Sam!' he thought with a grin. "Simon!" he radioed. "I got a lock! Quick, get everyone down here!"

In a surprising short period of time everyone was gathered at the gate and ready to go through. Ryan and Edmond Trellis went through first, taking Virachocha with them to show the farmers, who hadn't seen the gate in operation before, how simple and safe it was. The earth tremors were getting more intense and closer together and this, more than anything else, prompted the rest population to hurry. After the first thirty-eight minutes the Stargate shut down, as expected. With fingers crossed, Daniel once again dialed and nearly cheered when the wormhole settled.

Much to Daniel's relief, they were all safely through to the Alpha site before the next thirty-eight minute window was up, even the remaining animals. Daniel's last view of the city, just before he stepped through the wormhole, showed the water level only meters below the level the Stargate was on. He sighed, 'close call.'

As he exited the Stargate at the Alpha site, he was hailed by the man walking through the crowd towards him. "Daniel," Jacob said as he clasped him on the shoulder and gave him a big grin, which faded quickly as he glanced around at the scared new additions to the Alpha sites' population. "What the hell's going on with the Stargate?" Daniel sighed, before commencing to tell Sam's father what he knew. -0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Several hours later, after sending the Ta'alites from the Alpha site to Pangar, Daniel dialed Earth and was finally able to return home with SG-5. "Welcome back, son." General Hammond greeted him at the bottom of the ramp. Daniel sneezed in reply, his long exposure to the rain and cold winds on P3L-997 and then standing around in his wet uniform at the Alpha site catching up with him.

"What about the population of P3L-997?" Hammond asked.

"They are all safely settled on Pangar, for the moment." Daniel informed the general before sneezing violently again.

"Head for the infirmary," Hammond advised the snuffling doctor. "Major Brown," Hammond turned to address the CO of SG-5 while making sure Daniel left for the infirmary out of the corner of his eye. "I've assigned SG-9 and 10 to look for another planet to relocate the Ta'alites." The general's eyes moved over the four soldiers in front of him, swelling with pride at the quality of the people under his command. "You better head for infirmary too, we'll debrief in an hour."

"Yes, sir." Without further comment SG-5 turned and left the gateroom.

As soon as Sam was advised of Daniel's return to Earth she rushed to find him in the infirmary. He was sitting on a one of the beds, looking a bit under the weather but otherwise unharmed, dressed in a dry pair of BDUs, his legs swinging. He had just sneezed and was busily blowing his nose. Sam released a held breath, thinking how the colonel would have killed Felger if anything had happened to Daniel - with Teal'c and her as his willing assistants.

Daniel glanced up and caught Sam watching him. He smiled his wonderful smile in recognition. She walked to his side, idly flicking fingers through his hair to rest on the back of his neck. "Daniel, I'm so sorry you got stranded."

"Hey, from what I hear Ba'al did most of the damage." Daniel said trying to sound cheerful through his stuffy nose.

"But still . .," Sam started, attempting to share the blame.

"You couldn't have known, Sam." Daniel pulled her into a hug and Sam rested her head against his shoulder breathing in the damp scent of Daniel. Her arms reached around him to squeeze him tight, so relieved he was back safely. 

"Glad you're okay," she whispered into his neck, before pulling back. "I'm just sorry we have to cross P3L-997 off our list of possible new homes for the Talthusians." Her tone was full of sympathy.

'Yeah," Daniel sighed as he answered. "But we have one more to check out - hopefully third time lucky."

* * *

Many hours later Jack and Teal'c finally arrived back on Earth with their new toy. "It's an Alkesh fighter," Jack explained with a self-satisfied gleam in his eye. "A mid-range Goa'uld attack vessel." The smug expressions were quickly wiped from their faces, however, when they were informed of what had happened to Daniel.

"Why didn't someone tell us?" Jack demanded angrily as he stood next to the infirmary bed Janet had Daniel occupying, while visually checking his friend over for any injuries. He winced as yet another violent sneeze issued from the sick and sorry younger man. 

"There isn't anything you could have done, sir," Sam told him. "P3L-997 was too far away for you to reach in time."

Jack digested this information and nodded, then frowned. "Where's Felger?" he asked menacingly. "Teal'c and I would like to have a talk with him."

Sam cringed.

* * *

Part Two:

Three days later, after he was sure he had been dosed with every foul cold medicine Janet could lay her hands on, Daniel sat in the control room intently watching the MALP recording and viewing the UAV footage of the third planet they were investigating, P4P-961. A fairly large city was spread out on in a lush valley below the Stargate. From the footage sent back the architecture appeared to be Greek in origin, though with slight differences.

"Looks good," Daniel said, turning to grin at Jack and Teal'c who were standing behind his left shoulder.

"Yes," Hammond agreed, from his position over Daniel's right shoulder. "While you were recuperating SG-5 have already been to have a look around. The city is completely deserted."

"No natives, no rain," Sam said with a grin. She reached over and placed a hand on Daniel's arm, all his team knew how important this was to him.

"Fingers crossed," Daniel said.

Jack, on the pretext of seeing the screen better, leaned forwards to put a hand on Daniel's shoulder, giving it a little squeeze before turning to give Teal'c a smile, "And no bugs."

"Indeed," Teal'c said with a twinkle in his eye. Jack straightened to slap him on the shoulder.

"I'd like you to go through to P2A-347 and speak to the Talthusians." Hammond told Daniel. "But first, I want your personal appraisal of P4P-961." Daniel nodded, desperately hoping this time they would hit pay dirt.

* * *

Daniel, his attention captured by the picturesque scene below him, was only vaguely aware of the Stargate shutting down behind him. They were now on P4P-961 and he stood atop the Stargate pedestal, stone steps leading down to a broad paved street which ran into a moderately sized town. "Daniel," Jack said to get his attention indicating with a movement of his head that they should move down into the street below.

The street was made of grey cobblestone and there were weeds growing up through the gaps in many places, giving the whole area a neglected feel. Most of the buildings were single story, though there was one building in the centre of town with a tall spire on top. Inside this building was a single large empty room, a layer of dust thick upon the floor. "This could have been a meeting place," Daniel speculated as he moved around the room, looking out the windows. As SG-1 moved outside they were joined by SG-5, who had just returned from a patrol of the area.

"There's a good water supply," Major Brown, informed them pointing to a well near the central building. "Needs a bit of attention but is otherwise fine. The majority of the buildings are intact and in good condition - just need cleaning and a bit of TLC."

"The city has been abandoned for a very long time," Edmond Trellis continued. "We've been into all of the houses and there are no signs as to why the people who lived here left."

"Disease?" Sam queried idly, her attention caught by a perfectly carved lion's head adorning a wall nearby. She tapped the carving curiously, trying to determine what substance it was carved from, as the buildings seemed to be made from the same material. While it looked like sandstone it was incredible hard. Reaching into her back-pack she extracted her tools and, with a bit of difficulty took a scraping off the underside for testing.

"We've done extensive tests and there are no traces of anything harmful." Sergeant Sally Ryan said. "We've sent water, soil and fruit samples back to the SGC. All the results so far are negative."

"There could be any number of reasons the city was abandoned," Trellis said. "We may never know."

Brown shrugged. "Regardless, there will be more than enough room here for the Talthusians."

Daniel nodded and smiled as he walked towards the water well. Stopping suddenly, he bent to more closely examine a statue lying on its side next to a broken pedestal. The carving was perfect, the statue looked almost alive. "That's Aphrodite," he announced as he straightened up again. "Aphrodite was the Greek goddess of beauty, fertility and sexual love," he turned to explain to Jack.

"Ah," Jack said. "My kind of lady." Daniel chuckled, shaking his head and rolling his eyes at Sam and Teal'c. Brown and Trellis exchanged grins with their other team members.

On a small hill several hundred yards away SG-5 showed SG-1 a neglected orchard they had discovered with orange, apple and peach trees flourishing in the almost perfect climate. Just over the next rise they'd found wild grape vines bearing fruit. "This is great!" Jack said, grape juice running down his fingers as he ate a handful of the luscious fruit.

"And still no rain clouds." Daniel, from where he lay on the grass, his head cushioned on his backpack, pointing at the sky with a big smile. Indeed, above them was a beautiful cloudless blue sky stretching from horizon to horizon. Daniel sighed, turning his face up to the sun, letting the warmth flow through him, feeling at peace.

SG-5 had taken one of the larger homes as their temporarily quarters while planet-side and SG-1 commandeered another. All of the homes, which had roofs made of iron and walls constructed out of the same hard material as the statues and carvings, were empty of all furniture and fittings and had no doors. Jack knocked his fist against one of the walls. "Strong as the day it was built," he said in approval. 

Over the next two days they conducted a very thorough survey of an area ten miles in diameter around the town, including a full UAV sweep out to fifty miles. The verdict reached by all was that P4P-961 was perfect. Daniel sighed in satisfaction, this was the planet they'd searched for.

* * *

Colonel Richard Adams, SG-4's CO, met SG-1 at the gate on P2A-347. "Since the Sovereign is effectively trapped within Pharrin the next ranking officer of the Stromos, Deeter, has taken temporary command," he explained during the hike to the downed ship. The Stargate was situated approximately two miles from the wreck and it was presently the hottest part of the day. Daniel used a spare bandana to wipe the sweat from his brow, squinting up at the harsh sun overhead.

"Deeter was the person Pharrin told us to revive first," Major Greg Long, SG-4's 2IC further explained from his position at point.

"And Major," Adams turned to Sam. "The Naquadah generator gave us all the power we needed. We were able to shut it down once we'd revived all the Talthusians. Using stored backup parts they were able to get their own power source operational again within an hour."

"Good," Sam said with a smile then glanced ahead in curiosity. In the area next to the ship, in the shade of the steep cliffs, the Talthusians had set up a temporary camp. She frowned and, unless she missed her guess, they had already started to dismantle the Stromos.

As the SGC personnel approached the camp, one of the survivors moved apart from the rest to head towards them. He was of medium height with fair hair wearing a beige uniform with same distinctive shoulder embellishments as Pharrin, marking him as one of the Stromos' crew. "Greetings," the man said with a slight bow of his head. "I am Deeter."

"Deeter," Adams returned the man's greeting. "This is SG-1 - Colonel Jack O'Neill, Major Samantha Carter, Teal'c and . . . Dr. Daniel Jackson." Deeter smiled to all in turn but his eyes widened as his gaze rested on Daniel.

"Dr. Jackson," Deeter moved to stand before him. "Please do not hold Pharrin's actions against him," he pleaded. "I am sorry you were used to house the twelve consciousnesses but please be assured Pharrin wouldn't have done so unless he felt he had no other choice."

Daniel nodded. "No, I understand. There wasn't another choice. Pharrin did what he thought was right, what he thought he had to do."

"And he, and you too Dr. Jackson, saved the Sovereign and Pharrin's son as well as ten others," Deeter stated. "Come, it is a long walk from your Stargate. Please share our water."

"Deeter," Jack said with a big smile as they walked up to the camp. "We think we have found you a new home. Another planet where you will be re-located."

"Cannot we stay here?" Deeter questioned. "Then the others will know where to find us."

"This planet is too inhospitable." Adams explained patiently. "No fresh water supply and the climate is too harsh."

"Plus the new planet P4P-961 is actually a lot closer to Ardena than we are now," Daniel informed him. "Colonel Adams tells me you have a homing beacon you can take with you from the Stromos."

"Yes, that is correct." Deeter seemed more relieved. 

The camp was laid out with military precision and Jack guessed that Deeter had played a major hand in its organization. In the centre was a large open sided tent with cooking and food storage areas. Ringed around this tent were fully enclosed tents for sleeping. Jack guessed it would get very cold here during the night. A latrine had been set up a hundred meters away.

As they entered the shade under the main tent they all sighed in relief. This planet, in many ways, reminded Daniel of Abydos and he paused as grief unexpectedly hit him. He'd been through so much since he had descended, had so much to deal with that he'd pushed the memory of the fate of Abydos deep inside, wanting to deal with it when he was ready. Shaking himself out of the memories, telling himself 'not now' he moved to meet some of the other survivors. 

Daniel could feel the intense interest in him, not just from Deeter but from all standing within the tent and adjoining areas. He guessed they would have been told about how he had been a temporary 'lifeboat' for their fellow travelers.

'You're taking the ship apart?" Sam asked Deeter frowning up at the large vessel resting nearby.

"Yes. The Stromos, when it reached its final destination, would have been over two hundred and fifteen years old," Deeter explained. "All three vessels were made to be cannibalized for parts once they reached Ardena safely. To provide shelter for the survivors."

Sam was watching a young man, who was sitting nearby tinkering with something which resembled a laptop computer. Wires ran from this laptop into what she recognized as one of the Stromos' generators. Deeter noticed her interest.

"Janan," he called to the young dark haired man, who immediately put down the device and came to join them.

"This is Janan," Deeter said, putting a hand on the young man's shoulder. "His father invented the cryogenic sleeping chambers and Janan is our current expert."

"Isn't your father here?" Sam asked, looking around and, for the first time, it struck her how none of the survivors looked any older than mid thirties.

"My father had a place on the Stromos but he gave it to me," Janan said sadly. Sam bit her lip, regretting her question. She gave him a small smile of apology.

"Is it possible to release the consciousnesses from Pharrin?" Daniel, in an attempt to change the subject and also get information, asked the question uppermost in his mind.

"Yes." Janan brightened immediately. "There is a fail safe system set up just in case something like this happened. Our computers here on the Stromos have a designated area specifically to control the active matrix memory modules in which the cryo-sleeper's consciousness is stored. This memory module also maintains the sleeper's body. During the restoration process the consciousness is once again united with the body. As the computers are able to separate the human consciousness from the body, they can perform this same function to separate the consciousnesses in Pharrin."

"Great!" Daniel exclaimed, but frowned at the lack of reaction from Janan. "Isn't it?"

"We can separate them but have no where for them to go." Janan answered.

Daniel glanced at Jack. Back on Earth they had already sent a message to Thor, giving him all the details they had, and were hoping the Asgard would be able to help. Not wanting to raise false hopes with the Talthusians, they had decided to keep this information to themselves for the time being.

Over the next several hours Daniel moved amongst the one thousand and three survivors talking to them, describing the planet they were going to relocated to. They were all very thankful for the SGC's help.

Off to one side were a pile of cyro-chambers, stacked on their backs. Daniel stood before them. "These contain the bodies of those who died during the voyage as well as those whose consciousnesses reside in Pharrin," Janan moved to his side when he noticed Daniel's interest. "We will bury them when we are at our new home."

It was hours later when Daniel noticed Deeter was missing. He went through the Stromos to look for him and couldn't help the chill that ran up his spine as he stood before the cryogenic sleep chamber housing Pharrin. He continued his search and finally found Deeter well away from the camp, looking out over the vast plains. The setting sun painting the desert with all shades of orange, it was a magnificent sight. Daniel coughed softly and Deeter turned to see him.

"All my family are dead." Deeter said, the tears evident on his cheeks. "As crew I was allowed to bring one family member with me, my wife, but she died during the voyage." Daniel remembered Jack mentioning he'd found a skeleton in one of the cyro chambers when they were doing the first head count and was saddened to think this man, who now had so much responsibility, had the remains of someone he loved in the cryo-chambers outside.

Daniel glanced over at the camp. "They didn't know each other before you left Talthus, did they?" he indicated the other passengers.

"No. They are the only survivors of their families. They only met a few months before take-off but we all spent that time saying good-bye to our families, not mingling with our fellow survivors. Now we must pull together in order to survive."

"How long it is since you left Talthus?" Daniel asked.

"The ships systems tell us that we have traveled for nearly two hundred years," Deeter answered. "Talthus would have been destroyed for a long time."

Daniel said, the sympathy clear in his tone, "And even though it's been two hundred years, to you it's like it was last week."

"We knew for twelve years that Talthus was going to be destroyed," Deeter said. "Twelve years! There was nothing we could do." There was so much frustration in his tone.

"Pharrin believes the other ships will return to help you, once they receive your distress call," Daniel stated.

Deeter sighed. "I would like to believe they will return for us but know it is unlikely. The other ships' systems won't awaken the crew until they are in orbit around Ardena, in around fifteen years from now. They can't even respond to our distress call until then."

"Then they can track the homing beacon?" Daniel asked.

"By then it'll probably be too late to mount a rescue - they won't have the fuel or other resources to come back for us." Deeter said sadly. "They'll have to do what's best for the people they have on the two ships." He sighed again, looking like the weight of the world was on his shoulders. 

"There would be no problem if Ardena had a Stargate," Daniel said. "Unfortunately we've already done a check on the co-ordinates and there's no listing."

"Come," Deeter motioned to Daniel and together they entered the cool interior of the Stromos. They walked the corridors until they stood before Pharrin. "He is a good friend of mine; his wife was my sister, Alethia. I have known him for twenty years and served under him for the last twelve. Keenin is his whole world now, we . . . we can't lose him." 

"Um . ." Daniel paused then decided he needed to share this with Deeter. "We may have a solution for you." In a case of perfect timing there was a flash of light in the corridor and Thor was suddenly standing before them. Deeter jumped back in surprise. Daniel turned to place a hand on his arm. "Deeter, this is Thor of the Asgard." Thor nodded. "He is an ally and is the Supreme Commander of the Asgard fleet."

"Greetings, Dr. Jackson. Deeter." Thor's voice echoing in the corridor sounding very alien. "We have received your message and know of your dilemma," he stated.

"Thor, the Talthusians can separate the consciousnesses within Pharrin but have no where to put them." Daniel explained.

"We can help," Thor said and Daniel felt a weight lift off his shoulders and hope fill him. "Show us how to separate the consciousnesses and let us take him with us. We can create clone bodies and will return him, and them, once the transfer process is completed." Thor paused then questioned Deeter. "Do you have DNA from their bodies?"

Deeter reached into the empty chamber next to Pharrin and handed Thor a round disk and a small box. "This is all the information we have on the twenty-four survivors. It contains photographs and details on age at the time we left Talthus as well as detailed explanations on the separation process. Within the box are labeled specimens of DNA for each."

Thor took the disk and box then nodded gravely to Daniel and Deeter. "Do not be concerned. We have been transferring consciousnesses from one clone body to another for thousands of years. We will be able to duplicate the bodies of the survivors easily and bring them to the age they were when the bodies died." 

There was another flash of light. Thor and Pharrin along with his cryo-capsule were gone.

Daniel turned to Deeter. "It's better than the chance they had before. All we can do is wait."

The SGC personnel stood in amazement the following morning. In only an hour the camp had been dismantled and packed ready for departure onto solar powered trucks. One truck held the thirty coffins.

The dismantling of the Stromos would take months and it'd been decided that the Talthusians could simply use the Stargate to come back and complete the job at their leisure.

Overall Jack was very impressed with the range of supplies the Talthusians had brought with them across the galaxy, but then they had planned this for twelve years. They had frozen food supplies as well as dried that would last them several years. On top of this they had supplies of seeds for all types of food stuffs from grains to fruit and vegetables. They had few personal items other than clothing but many had holograms of their families and friends left behind.

"When the Asgard clone the bodies," Jack said quietly to Daniel two days later after the relocation to P4P-961 was almost complete. "Any chance they can forget to clone the Sovereign?"

"Jack . ." Daniel began. Whatever else he planned to say was lost in a flash of light, Jack blinked and Daniel was gone.

"Thor! God Damn it!" Jack yelled in frustration, barely resisting the urge to shake his fist at the sky.

That instant, high above P4P-961, Daniel looked around the room he now stood in, his attention captured by twenty-five figures standing behind Thor. "Dr. Jackson." Thor said in greeting before stepping aside.

Pharrin, who Daniel recognized, stepped forward. At his side was a young blonde boy around nine years of age. "Dr. Jackson. I am Pharrin and this is my son, Keenin."

"Thank you for what you have done," Keenin said softly, his sad little face turned up to Daniel.

Daniel felt choked with tears. He remembered so little of the time he had shared his body with the twelve Tathusians but he'd viewed the tapes and had seen and heard what happened when Keenin had been in control of his body. He knelt down until he was eye level with the little boy and looked into the huge brown eyes, now awash with tears. "You are very welcome," he said, reaching out to put a hand on a thin shoulder.

"I am Martice, the Sovereign." A short very slender man moved to stand in front of Daniel, his gray thinning hair swept back from his forehead. Daniel rose to his feet, this is another personality he recognized from the tapes. Martice gave Daniel a haughty look. "Our people owe you and your race a huge debt for saving me," a pause, "and these others."

Daniel, at a loss as to how to answer, settled on nodding in acknowledgement. He caught Keenin's eye and smiled. Of all the Talthusians Daniel had seen Martice was by far the oldest.

"I will return you all to planet below now," Thor announced.

"Thank you," Daniel said sincerely and his comment was backed up by all the Talthusians.

"We owe you a great debt," Pharrin said with a bow of his head. Thor nodded.

With a sudden flash of light, Daniel and the twenty-five from the Stromos were standing just outside the town on P4P-961.

Stunned disbelief was quickly turned to jubilation as the other Talthusians rushed to welcome back their fellow survivors. Over the course of the next two days, the SGC assisted the Talthusians with the final steps in their relocation and instructed the engineers on how to use the Stargate and gave them the co-ordinates for P2S-347, so they could return to the Stromos wreck, as well as the co-ordinates they would need to return home afterwards.

They chose a small hill five hundred meters from the town as their cemetery and buried all the cyro-chambers. The ceremony was one of mixed emotion - saying good-bye to the unlucky who had died and the bodies of those who, though an alien technology, now lived in new bodies.

From the hill Daniel took in the scene before him. The afternoon sun shone over the town, now called Ardena by its new occupants, who had already marked it as theirs. Colorful decorations now made the previously deserted and neglected town come to life. In just a few days paths had been weeded and swept, repairs made and homes claimed. There was a sense of anticipation among the Talthusians, or rather Ardenans as they now took to calling themselves, and optimism for the future.

Daniel now glanced over at Pharrin and Keenin, who he had grown close to over a short period of time, their shared experience bonding them together. Silently he thanked Thor and the Asgard again. Without their help this would not have been possible.

Finally it was time to leave. The SGC had left a GDO with the Arendans and radios to communicate through the wormhole. Daniel promised himself that he would make frequent visits back to this planet.

Daniel, the last to enter the wormhole back to Earth, turned to look again at Keenin, standing in front with his father's hands on his shoulders. The young boy smiled and waved.

Daniel nodded before turning to enter the Stargate and go home.

The End


End file.
